Schizophrenic Albanian woman who slashed seven-year-old girl to death at random in front of her parents on Mother's Day has her jail sentence increased after judge made 'error'
- Paranoid schizophrenic Eltiona Skana, 30, killed Emily Jones, seven, in a park
- She was sentenced to life and told she could not get parole for eight years
- But that period was upped to 10 years and eight months after judge's error
- Mr Justice Wall admitted he 'had forgotten' about April 2020 law change
Paranoid schizophrenic Eltiona Skana, 30, was sentenced to life imprisonment for the manslaughter of Emily Jones in Bolton
A killer who slit the throat of a seven-year-old girl in a random park attack on Mother's Day has had her sentence increased after a judge forgot a law.
Paranoid schizophrenic Eltiona Skana, 30, was sentenced to life imprisonment for the manslaughter of Emily Jones in Bolton and had been told she could not be considered for parole for at least eight years.
But on Monday that minimum period was upped to 10 years and eight months after a judge admitted he had made a mistake.
Mr Justice Wall explained in a brief hearing at Teesside Crown Court, where he is currently sitting, that he had arrived at the original figure by halving the notional determinate sentence of 16 years.
He said: 'However, when I passed that sentence I had forgotten from the April 1, 2020, the law as to the minimum period to be served by a violent or sexual offender whose sentence was or exceeded seven years was two thirds and not one half of the sentence.
'Thus the minimum term which I set, and which was based on the premise that had I passed a determinate sentence the defendant would only have had to serve half her sentence before being eligible for release on parole, was calculated in error.
Emily Jones (pictured) had visited the park with her father Mark Jones and mother Sarah Barnes, who are separated, on March 22, this year
Emily had ridden past on a scooter calling out 'Mummy! Mummy!' when she was killed
'It is an error to which all in court fell, for which I take full responsibility.'
Skana attended the hearing via video-link from high-security Rampton Hospital where she is a patient under the Mental Health Act.
Mr Justice Wall explained in a brief hearing at Teesside Crown Court, where he is currently sitting, that he had arrived at the original figure by halving the notional determinate sentence of 16 years.
The judge had previously ruled that despite her mental illness Skana retained 'a significant amount of responsibility', which merited punishment by him passing not a hospital order but a 'hybrid' order, meaning the defendant will go to prison for the remainder of her sentence if her condition improves sufficiently.
Skana got up from a bench and randomly attacked Emily as she went past on a scooter calling out 'Mummy! Mummy!' to her mother jogging round Queen's Park, Bolton on March 22.
The Albanian national, who first came to the UK in 2014 after claiming asylum, had a long history of mental illness and had not been taking her anti-psychotic medication.
She admitted manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility.
Emily's family members described the seven-year-old's killing as 'monstrous'. They also paid tribute to their 'beautiful, spirited little girl'.
Skana had pleaded guilty at an earlier court appearance to manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility - a type of legal defence which centres around whether a defendant had proper mental capacity at the time of the offence.
This is the moment the 30-year-old was arrested after using a craft knife to slash the neck of Emily as she played on her scooter during a random attack in Queen's Park, Bolton
Paranoid schizophrenic Skana tells police she has an 'ID, knife, water and juice' in her bag as they take her into custody
A murder conviction was earlier withdrawn by prosecutors, who felt there was no realistic of prospect of a conviction against Skana - an incurable paranoid schizophrenic.
Emily had visited the park with her father Mark Jones and mother Sarah Barnes, who are separated, on March 22, this year.
The court heard how Emily had spotted her mother, who was jogging around the park, and rode towards and called out to her.
Emily Jones's father Mark (right at court today following sentencing, and left with Emily) was in court when Skana was today handed a life sentence
But Emily's route took her past Skana, who was sat on a bench and armed with a craft knife.
The knife was one of a pack of three she had bought earlier that day.
Skana stood up as Emily went past on her scooter, grabbed her in a headlock and in 'one movement slit her throat' before throwing her to the ground.
The killer ran off but a brave passer-by, Tony Canty, caught up with her and knocked her to the ground. He sat on her until police arrived and with Skana 'babbling' about 'injections', the 'Home Office' and 'pigs'.
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